Falling Head Over Heels For You AVAILABLE FOR ADOPTION
by Bluecookiesandwizards
Summary: Mortal AU. Annabeth Chase was really looking forward to the Italian exchange, until she found out she has to share a house with the one and only Percy Jackson. Their relationship has always been rocky, but throwing the same living space for two weeks into the mix will have some interesting results. *PM ME TO ADOPT THIS FANFIC*
1. Chapter 1 - The bombshell

I anxiously lay in bed, waiting for the email from Mr Brunner to come through. He had told us that he had assigned us our Italian exchange partners and that he would email us the details tonight. Staring at the screen was hurting my eyes, but I couldn't help it. I had been looking forward to this trip for almost a year, so being prepared was vital to me. However, I was extremely tired, so I made myself a cup of steaming hot coffee and watched the frost on the window form.

Finally, after what seemed like forever, there was a PING! and a new email on my laptop screen. I opened the document attached with great anticipation and quickly scanned the document for my name. Next to Annabeth Chase was the name 'Reyna Avila Ramírez-Arellano'. I clicked on her name and looked at the pairing form she filled out. She described herself as independent and kind, and had said that she enjoyed martial arts and horse riding. She seemed like a good exchange partner, so all was well. I was just about to shut my laptop and go to sleep when I saw that she said she would like to host two people. Did that mean she was hosting someone else too? I scanned through the original document for her name again until I spotted it further up. Next to Reyna's name was the last name on Earth that I wanted to see there: Percy Jackson.

My heart sank, and I pulled a Luke Skywalker-style: "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!", but silently so I didn't wake my parents up. I then flopped down onto my bed and stared at the ceiling.

Percy Jackson. The most arrogant, conceited and disrespectful boy I have ever had the displeasure of meeting. He was the typical popular pretty boy; captain of the basketball and swimming team, girls hanging off his arms. Turns up late to every lesson (except Mythology) and strides down the halls like he owns the place. And unfortunately, we've known each other for a long time.

I met him in my first year of middle school and I immediately disliked him.

I'm pretty sure it was because he drew a dick on my math book, threw a paper aeroplane at the teacher's head and said it was me.

To be fair, in return, I tossed his bag out the window and told the teacher that he made 'inappropriate comments about you'.

That's how it all started. We ended up hating each other. Every moment we saw each other, we would both do our best to get on each other's nerves. I'll never say it to his face, but we were a pretty even match. Both headstrong and creative in ways to prank each other.

That was back when we were in middle school.

"You're going to share with who?!" Piper spat out her fry and began to cackle at me.

"Shut up." I groaned, burying my face in my hands. It really wasn't fair, out of all the uneven matches you could make, Annabeth Chase and Percy Jackson. Like we would ever be even cordial to each other.

"You know Annie," began a grinning Thalia, as she slid into the seat next to me with her pasta, "I do find the situation quite amusing."

"Yeah...well...I find your face amusing." I said, unable to come up with anything wittier.

"I mean, think about it though." continued Thalia. "You can really fix things with Jackson."

"Yeah." Piper joined in. "You can put your petty rivalry aside and become the ultimate couple."

Thalia gave her a weird look. "Actually, I was thinking more the wreak-havoc-upon-his-soul type thing. You know, show him who's boss."

I ignored both of them. "You know, I'm just going to speak to Mr Brunner. It must have been a mistake, because he's seen firsthand how we are around each other." The last time he paired us up in lesson was when Mr Brunner got a brand new hole in his ceiling.

"What's your problem sharing an exchange partner with him anyway?" asked Piper. "It's only for two weeks, and the whole point of this trip is to make friends."

I sighed heavily. "No Pipes, the point is to go and see Rome, not to spend all my time looking over my shoulder. I'll have to live in the same house as him!"

Taking a fork, I speared a piece of Thalia's pasta because it looked fantastic. I was so right. "I'm going to go speak to Mr Brunner now." I turned to Piper. "I have physics homework to do after as well, so I'll catch you in Math?"

Both Piper and Thalia gave me disgusted looks.

"Physics homework, Annabeth? Really?"

"And yeah, I'll see you in Math."

Leaning forward in his wheelchair, Mr Brunner looked up at me, frowning slightly. "I'm sorry Miss Chase, but the decision was not mine alone. There was only one Italian student who opted to have two exchange students, and you and Mr Jackson were the only two people left."

I gritted my teeth. "Can't you just swap one of us with someone else...sir?" I added quickly, so that I didn't seem rude.

"I thought that you and Mr Jackson have improved your rocky relationship, Miss Chase. In fact, he personally assured me that you two are friends."

I let out a nervous laugh. "Sorry?"

"He even said that he would like to be with you."

My world crashed at that moment.

Oh great. Fan-tastic. This had to be a joke. "Ha ha ha ha ha, that's a good one, Mr Brunner." I laughed weakly, hoping he was kidding.

"Miss Chase, I assure you I am serious." he said, smiling slightly.

No way. No freaking way. No way did Percy Jackson willingly share anything with me. "Maybe this is part of his revenge on me for what I did last week. To be fair, he had it coming, although maybe filling his entire locker with shaving cream was a bit harsh." I thought, my mind working furiously to justify why Jackson would do this.

"Well thank you Mr Brunner." I said, and rapidly turned on my heels with the intent to find Percy Jackson.

 **So, this is the new and not really improved version of the first chapter. I know parts are similar, but a good writer told me to try to avoid rewriting the whole thing, so I listened and rewrote the bits that were making me vomit. Please review and give feedback.**


	2. Chapter 2

As soon as high school began, there was something different about Percy Jackson. You could tell he was no longer a child. And not just from his looks. I mean sure, he definitely got taller, leaner and altogether more 'manly'. But you could tell by looking at his face. He was still the same laughing, carefree kid from middle school, but he looked sadder. His happy expression would occasionally drop when he thought no one was looking, and his sea-green eyes held a more distant look.

Of course, it's not like I was looking at him a lot. Ahem.

It was for these reasons that I thought the childish pranks and jokes would stop. I thought he had grown out of them and would act civil towards me. However, I was unfortunately proven wrong in homeroom when he kept poking me with his pencil and sharpened it over my open bag.

It may seem like a fun and jokey relationship, but it was actually really stressful. Having to watch everything carefully all the time because he would pick on me for fun.

Bear in mind, the pranks didn't happen too often. Once every three weeks, I would say, when one of us would really piss the other one off. I never struck first though. I would only prank him for revenge.

Percy Jackson was putting away his books in his locker as I approached. He was with his friends, laughing and joking as he sorted out his bag.

"Jackson, may I have a word?" I smiled sweetly.

Percy looked taken aback, but nodded anyway, following me around the corner. "What is it, Wise Girl?" he grinned as he said my nickname, running a hand through his raven black hair.

Momentarily distracted by his hair, I blinked. (We all do it, don't judge me.) "What are you playing at?"

"I'm sorry, what?"

"The Italian exchange, idiot! I don't know about you, but I don't want to waste the trip that I've been dying to go on. So tell me, what's the point of requesting to share an exchange partner with me anyway? To irritate me?"

Percy just grinned even wider, and reaching for something in his pocket, pulled out a packet of gum. "Gum?" I batted it away with an irritated look, so he shrugged and ate one. After chewing it for ages, he spoke. "You know Annabeth, Rome is going to be really boring. And let's face it, you're probably one of the most entertaining people at this school, because you put up a good fight."

Oh. So I'm for entertainment. Taking a step closer I said "Really? You're going to bother me for two whole weeks non-stop for entertainment? Good luck with that, but I don't plan on letting you ruin my vacation."

I spun on my heels and walked away, just as Percy called out. "Nice skirt, Chase."

"Thanks!" I said with a mock giggle, still not turning around.

"Miss Chase, you are five minutes late! Detention after school today."

Oops. Mrs Dodds wasn't in the best of moods, and I supposed turning up late wasn't a good idea. "Stupid Jackson, making me late." I muttered, apparently not quiet enough.

"WHAT DID YOU JUST SAY MISS CHASE?" Ms Dodds wheeled round and shrieked at me.

I shook my head and gave her my best confused look. It didn't work.

"Detention for the whole week!"

"No!" I shouted indignantly before realising that it was not the time to rebel. "Pick your battles, Annabeth." I thought to myself.

Miss Dodds was slowly turning redder and redder. "Excuse me?" she said in a dangerously quiet voice. Blinking furiously, her chest rising and falling rapidly, she said "Miss Chase, detention for the next two weeks." Then she turned to the chalkboard and began to scribble harshly.

A new voice spoke up. "I'm sorry I'm late Miss Dodds-"

"MR JACKSON, DETENTION FOR THE NEXT TWO WEEKS. SHUT UP AND SIT DOWN!"

Percy had arrived at the classroom door and received the full brunt of Miss Dodds' anger towards me. I smirked at him as he looked startled, but grinned afterwards anyway. He quietly sat down and began to twirl his pencil.

As I walked out of Math and headed to detention, I heard quick footsteps behind me and someone familiar called out "Annabeth!"

Unfortunately, I recognised the voice immediately. Luke Castellan, my ex. We went out for a solid year. All that time wasted that I'll never get back. It turns out that after going out with me for about three months, he started to mess around with about three other girls. He must've got bored of me, but I never noticed until I caught him in the act. To this day, I'm so angry with myself for not realising sooner, but I was so deep in my admiration for him, I couldn't see what was right in front of me.

"Annabeth, wait up!"

I continued walking without turning around. "What is it, Luke?"

He jogged up to me and deftly turned himself around so he was effectively blocking my way. "Annabeth, why are you in such a rush to go to detention?" he asked, smirking.

"Believe it or not Luke, but I'd rather be in detention than talk to you." I sighed. "Now move." I really wasn't in the mood for this.

His cold blue eyes flickered around the hallway as if he was watching out for someone. "Come on Annabeth, just talk to me for a bit."

"Why?"

"Because that beautiful Maisie is looking this way, and-"

I pushed past him with yet another exasperated sigh.

"Hey hey, sorry." he said, blocking my path again. "I actually want to talk." He scratched his sandy blonde hair awkwardly and began to speak. "Listen, I know you hate me, and I'm sorry. But I really like you Annabeth, and you really like me. So can't we go somewhere together, just as friends if you like?"

"Okay."

"And I know-wait what? Really?!"

"Nope."

"Anna-"

"Now, I'm trying my hardest to be polite, but if you don't move away, I'm going to tear you apart." I completely lost my patience, and stared him straight in the eyes.

At that moment, my third least favourite person in the world decided to walk by. You know, because the universe doesn't hate me enough already.

Still walking at the same speed, and giving Luke a spare glance, Percy said "I think she just cock-blocked you, Castellan. You should probably take the hint." And he walked away too quickly for Luke or me to react.

Turning my attention back to Luke, who looked slightly angry, I pushed past him again. "Bye."

 **Okay for any new readers, from this point on, some things may not make sense, or there may be some plot holes. This is because I went back after chapter 7 and did a pretty major re-editing, so their relationship may be off, or the characters. I will fix it as soon as possible!**

 **Review! xxxxx**


	3. Chapter 3

**Aaah thank you so much for the feedback and keep it coming! Also, I know Percy's character seems extremely different to how we know and love, but I just need him to be like this to fit the plot line.**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own any of the characters from the Percy Jackson universe, they belong to Rick Riordan.**

Annabeth's POV

As soon as I walked through my front door, I was hit by a tennis ball right in the head. "BOBBY!" The boy giggled and ran away. Siblings. You gotta love 'em.

Pretty soon, I changed into my hello kitty pajamas (don't judge me) and settled on my bed to work on my college application. It was hard though, with my dad banging all the pots and pans and my stepmom screaming at my half-brothers, so eventually I stopped. I went downstairs for dinner, then came back up and carried on working until about 10:30. Then I just remember collapsing on my bed from exhaustion.

I was woken up at around 12:30, by a strange sound. It sounded a lot like rain, so I just ignored it and tried to go back to sleep. It was rather loud though, so I dragged myself up to investigate. I drew my curtain to see a man throwing gravel at my window. What? His face was covered by the darkness, but I couldn't mistake those piercing green eyes. Percy.

I threw on a hoodie and some slippers and tiptoed past my dad's room. I quietly unlocked the front door and rushed out. I ran up to Percy and was about to start questioning him, when I noticed a big, angry red mark on his cheekbone and the ugly graze on his knee.

Percy's POV

As I stood there staring at Annabeth's house, I began to wonder why I even thought this was a good idea. _Yeah, nice going Jackson. Show up at the girl's house who hates your guts in the middle of the night. Great idea!_

I didn't know who to go to though. I definitely couldn't go back home and my friends live pretty far away. The only person I actually know and kind of trust in my neighbourhood is Annabeth. Not to mention I may have a tiny crush on her.

Ugh, there weren't any lights on in her house so she was probably asleep. And I didn't think her dad would appreciate it if I rung the doorbell. Then I had a bright idea. Throw some gravel at her window and wake her up! So I used my Sherlock Holmes skills to deduce which window to hit and I deduced that the one with the owl curtains was hers.

When I threw the gravel, it took a while for her to wake up. When she finally got up and looked out of the window, I saw the recognition flash across her face.

She ran down and out of the door. I had a feeling she was about to launch into an interrogation, but then she saw my knee and my face and her gaze softened. "Percy." she said quietly. "What happened?"

I took a deep breath and tried to hold her stare. Her eyes were so stormy grey and intimidating that it took a lot of willpower to meet them with my own.

I wanted to play it off, though. I don't like to break down in front of anyone and I wasn't about to tell my sob story to this girl. "Listen, don't worry Annie. I was jogging and slipped over. I would go home but I lost my keys and no-ones home."

Annie definitely didn't buy it. She narrowed her scary (yet mesmerising) eyes. "You were jogging? At midnight? And when you slipped over, you managed to get a mark on your face but a graze on your knee?"

"Yep, that's pretty much it."

"Okay, sure. I'll play along because I'm assuming the reason you came here was to make me patch you up."

"Yep!" I gave her my classic 'Percy Jackson' smile, in the hopes she would soften up. It seemed to have its desired effect, but she turned away and grumbled.

"Go and wait in the shed. I'll bring some first aid supplies to fix your ungrateful self."

So, I went to go wait in the shed. It was a pretty roomy shed and was well lit. When Annabeth arrived with a first aid kit, the first thing I noticed were her pyjamas.

"BAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

"What?" asked Annabeth. Then she looked down and realised she was wearing hello kitty pyjamas.

I couldn't stop laughing. I found it hilarious that a girl who always dressed perfectly, looked perfect, acted perfect and had the perfectest (I don't think that's a word) grades was wearing hello kitty pyjamas.

Annabeth just walked up to me and poked me in my cheek where I had been hit. "OUCH!"

"You should be thankful I've gotten out of bed to help the most irritating guy I know! And don't you dare laugh at me Jackson!"

My laughter quickly subsided.

"Now, put your knee on this table and hold this ice against your cheek." I did as I was told. "Anything for you, Annie."

She ignored me as per usual and began to disinfect my wound. Oddly, I found it quite awkward being close to her which was strange because, truth be told, I normally like being near pretty girls. Okay, now I'm a perv.

About five minutes later I was starting to get impatient. Blame it on my ADHD. "Annie, when will this be finished?"

"Seaweed brain, this wound is pretty deep. And think about it. If I decide I don't want to do this, I can just take you to A&E. Then they'll ask you where you got it from and apparently you don't want to answer that. So shut up." She smirked because she knew she had me there.

Soon, she was bandaging my knee while I was inwardly cursing her wisdom. All of a sudden, I asked: "Where did the nickname 'seaweed brain' come from?"

She smirked again. "You don't remember? Remember in elementary school when you called Clarisse ugly and she shoved your head in the fishbowl? When we all prised the bowl off your head, there was loads of seaweed draped on your face. So the name 'seaweed brain' stuck." She snorted just thinking about it.

"Humph. I think I forgot about that on purpose."

She smiled a beautiful smile and finished bandaging my leg. "Alright Jackson, I think you're done. Keep icing your face and moisturise it when it starts to heel. You don't want the skin to crack."

"Thanks Annie."

"No problem."

"Do you want to kiss my owies better?"

"Goodbye seaweed brain."

I was about to leave, when Annabeth stopped me. "Percy, do you have anywhere to stay tonight?"

"Uhhh, no."

"Yeah I thought so. You can stay in here I suppose. It's got heating and a sleeping bag in the corner. I would let you stay in the house, but if my stepmom found out she would freak."

What? Really? The girl-who-I-may-have-a-crush-on-but-hates-me is letting me stay in her house? Well not really house, but same thing. I opened my mouth to thank her, but she had already walked out.

 **So whaddya think?! Okay I'm sorry if it's really bad, I am ill and tired but I haven't updated in a while so yeah. I decided to try out writing in Percy's POV and I don't really like it, but what do you think? I just really wanted to show Annabeth from Percy's eyes.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Yo as always, thank you so much for your support and don't forget to review. Reviews always make me smile! Let's jump straight into it then!**

Annabeth's POV:

Why did I open my stupid mouth? I didn't want Percy-stupid-Jackson in my shed, but it seemed like he was in a desperate situation and I am a kind person. I basically decided to forget about it and go to sleep because that is the best way to deal with a problem.

The next day, I woke up and went to the shed to see if Seaweed Brain was still there. Yep, he was there and still sleeping. I'm not going to lie, he looked pretty darn cute but I ignored that fact. Then I noticed he was twitching and muttering under his breath. "Stop-please-don't!"

"Percy!"

I expected him to stay sleeping, but to my surprise he sat up straight and said: "Yeah mom? Are you okay?"

"Percy it's Annabeth. I brought you a bagel. We have to get to school soon. " I said gently.

"Oh. Uhh, hi. Thanks for, you know letting me stay and for the bagel."

"No problem Jackson. But are you coming to school or are you going to skip it again?" I smirked.

"Uhh yeah I'm coming. Wait for me, Annie, and then we can walk together."

"Okay stop calling me Annie. But if you want me to walk with you then fine, but hurry up. I don't fancy being screamed at by Mrs Dodds again."

"True that Princess."

"Can you stop?"

He chuckled and soon we set off, taking care to dodge my dad. Itwas awkward to say the least, because it's known that when you walk, you have to make conversation. I kept glancing over to him and I'm pretty sure he was looking at me. Ugh, why is he so hot? I had to keep on telling myself that he's just a player and he doesn't actually want me as a person. I also felt like he was trying to win me over, and it was working.

Once we arrived at school, I ditched him. I felt really bad, but then I looked back and saw him surrounded by a bunch of girls, clearly in his element. What a douchebag.

...

"So, Annie," began Piper, sliding in the seat next to me. I gave a small smile to her and continued eating my pasta. "What's the deal with you and Percy?"

"Ugh, Piper give me a break. What more is there?"

"I'm sorry, but I can see the way you look at him."

"Nope. We are not talking about this. And anyway, what about you and Jason?" I teased.

A pink tinge started to creep up Piper's neck. "What do you mean?"

Thalia slid into the chair next to Piper. "She means we all know about the massive crush you have on my dorky brother."

"Oh come on, it's not massive!"

"Uh, yeah!" said Thalia and I simultaneously. "Remember when you wrote 'Piper Grace' all over your notepad and Ms Dodds caught you?"

"Remember when he sung a love song during the talent show and when he looked at you, you fainted?"

"Remember when he put on his snapchat that he was sick, and you came round my house in about two minutes with soup and a hot water bottle?"

"Remember when-"

"Okay, okay I get it!" Piper said loudly. A little too loud, as the majority of teens in the cafeteria turned around to stare, including Jason Grace. Me, being the best friend ever, tried to shield Piper's reddening face from him. Meanwhile, Thalia was crying with silent laughter. Once everyone had turned back around, and Thalia had finally got over her fit, she said: "It's actually pretty gross that you like him though, Pipes. He likes you too as well though. He won't shut up about you and he thinks he's being subtle. What an idiot."

Piper just ignored Thalia and focused on her chicken salad.

...

I was just about to leave school and go to my nice warm house, when Piper stopped me. "Annabeth we have detention." Crap crappity crap crap.

"Fine, let's go." When we got there, guess who was there as well. Percy-fucking-Jackson and Luke-fucking-Castellan. So I sat on the opposite end of the classroom with Piper and ignored both of them. I'd had enough drama the past few days.

Piper and I were chatting quietly, Percy was glaring at Luke and Luke was glaring at me. Just when I was praying for someone or something to alleviate the tension, Mr Brunner wheeled in.

"Good afternoon." He looked up. "Piper? Annabeth? Percy? What are you doing here?"

"Mrs Dodds." we all chorused.

"Oh. Makes sense, I suppose. Well, I'm late for my date - I mean appointment - so if you three promise to go home, do your Mythology homework and not tell Ms Dodds, you can leave now."

And that is why Mr Brunner is my favourite teacher. I jumped up when Luke said: "What about me?"

Mr Brunner frowned. "I suppose it would be mean to make you stay, Mr...?"

"Castellan." said Luke with gritted teeth. That made me laugh.

Piper and I left the school happily and watched Luke leave, glowering.

Next Monday: 

I walked out of the house lugging a suitcase that weighed about three horses. Today was the day we set off for Italy, and I was so excited I was almost peeing myself. Apart from the fact I was sharing with a guy that I don't understand, it was going to be awesome! All the amazing architecture and structure! I met Thalia on the way and we walked to the front of the school, talking non-stop the whole way. Once we got on the first Italy bus, there was about thirty other kids with us. "Sheesh Thals. It's going to be hard to find seats."

Thalia rolled her eyes and stalked over to two boys around our age. "Hey, losers. Get up." I recognised them as Travis and Connor Stoll.

"What? No!" said Travis.

"I don't have time for this Travis. Go sit next to Katie, I'm sure she would love your company."

Travis went bright red and got up, muttering. Connor followed him hastily and Thalia turned around, grinning. "Come on Annie."

We sat down quickly and within minutes the bus wheels were rolling and we were off!

 **Okay, I get that this chapter is kind of sucky. But I don't have a lot of time and I'm sick. But next chapter will be better, I promise. Love you all and don't forget to review!**


	5. Chapter 5

**First of all I realise that I have been a horrible human being by not responding to your reviews. I sincerely apologise!**

 **Fluffyshygirl11, Mickey and Lilly: thank you so much for reading and your support!**

 **The Malu: thank you and I love your fanfics! Especially the one where Annabeth and Percy live opposite to each other!**

 **Aqua Jackson: I've had two reviews from you, and I assume that they're from the same person! So thanks so much for reading, (and reviewing twice!) and I'm glad you enjoy it!**

 **Cinder Luna: Thank you! I'm glad that you think it's well written because I have my doubts. Also, I will definitely try to write longer chapters, but I may have to keep them the same length and update more regularly instead.**

 **MissLoverOfAllThingsMagical: Ah you hit the nail on the head about the Romans. Or did you? No one knows. Tee hee. And about the chicken salad, girl you are so right! Why is Piper eating chicken if she's vegetarian? Stupid me. I can't really be bothered to change it, but until I do, imagine that it's a tofu salad.**

 **Sally Stevens: Yeah it should be Falling Head Over Heels For You. God damnit. Thanks for pointing that out though! To be overly honest, I have no idea why it's the title. I should've just called it "The Italian Exchange' or something, but I had to be stupid. Anyway thanks again!**

 **Also, I haven't updated that recently because I've been in Italy (no lie) and there was Wifi. I actually wrote a lot of chapters though, and I've got a lot of time seeing as I'm on crutches now. Yippee!**

 **Alright now time for the story! Thanks so much for the reviews guys!**

Annabeth's POV:

As soon as we reached the airport in Italy, I collapsed on one of the benches, completely exhausted from the gruelling 15 hour flight. Checking myself in my hand mirror, I realised I didn't look as bad as a I felt, or as bad as some of my classmates. Percy Jackson, for example, staggered off the flight looking extremely sick and dishevelled. This made me extremely happy and I gained some more energy from his discomfort. "Is that bad?" I thought. "Oh well, I don't really care."

Percy came back from the bathroom and grinned at me, making my stomach leap. "Jeez, I hate flights." He scratched his head.

"Yeah, I don't like them much either."

He eyed the massive suitcase at my feet. " Princess, you need help from a strong handsome man to carry your luggage?" He smirked and flexed his biceps.

I snorted. "Don't be sexist, Jackson. Anyway, I don't see a strong handsome man around soooooooo..."

"Ahahaha very funny, Wise Girl." He reached down for my suitcase. "Good luck with that." I thought. His face turned red as he attempted to pick it up and his muscles were strained. He lifted it about one inch off the ground, then dropped it back down, breathing heavily.

"Well done, Jackson. Thanks for trying I suppose." With that, I turned on my heels, lifted my heavy suitcase (with a bit of difficulty) and walked off leaving Percy gaping. 1-nil Annabeth. Oh yeah folks. I'm a badass.

...

There was a massive banner at the front of the Italian School saying "Welcome American Exchange Students 2017!". As soon as we entered, I could tell there was something different compared to our school. All the students were smiling and laughing, but they were also walking in an orderly fashion - in a straight line with the students coming from the other end of the hallway in a different line. It made sense compared to the chaos of the hallways in my school. Sometimes, kids would literally climb over each other to get to their destination.

A tall woman who looked kind but protective, almost like a pretty mother wolf, greeted us. "Welcome!" She spoke in English with an accent. "My name is Miss Lupa. I am the headteacher of Scuola Di Jupiter. Your exchange partners are waiting in the other room. I will call out your names and you will go to your partners, who are holding signs with their names on."

When Percy and I went to stand next to Reyna, she smiled and greeted us. She ran her eyes over me and then Percy, but spent a little longer eyeing Percy. Perfect.

"So," she started. "You guys are spending the day at school with me, and then we can go home."

"Whoa." said Percy. "You speak english pretty darn well."

"My dad's American, so I grew up speaking Italian and English. We have English first, actually."

"Ah I have a feeling I will be good at this one, Wise Girl." winked Percy.

"Well, duh, but I bet I'll be better."

"Put your money where your mouth is."

"I would if I didn't have a brain."

"Chicken. You're just scared that I'm gonna do better. I bet you twenty euros that I do better in this lesson."

"First off it's 'going' which proves that I'm better than you. Secondly, fine, you're on."

"Wise Girl, you're so going to lose."

"In. Your. Dreams. I wonder how many books I can get for twenty euros."

"Guys," Reyna interjected. "This is amusing and all, but we have to get to class now."

We walked along the corridors until we reached the English class. Percy and I sat down and basically ignored what the teacher was saying, considering he was speaking in rapid Italian. Occasionally, he would explain what he was saying in English, where Percy would do his best to suck up and say stuff like: "Yes, I thought so" or "fascinating!"

Then the teacher told us that the class were doing a vocab test and we could do it too. We nodded and exchanged glances with each other. This was it.

Whilst we were doing the test, I looked over to Percy who was looking rather confused. I guess he didn't think that he would have to translate Italian to English. I grinned to myself. Now, being incredibly clever, I had learned some Italian over the last couple of weeks. I wanted to be prepared for being in Italy. I wasn't fluent, but I knew the basics and some of the phrases we were meant to translate were familiar. So I did the best I could, and filled out a few of the answers.

The test finished after around ten minutes, and we passed our tests to the other people in the class. I ended up doing alright: 6/10. Of course, I would not normally be happy with that score, but considering I just picked the language up, I was quite proud. Percy ended up getting a big fat zero. I laughed for about five minutes when he told me his score grouchingly.

"Hand over the twenty euros Jackson."

"Aww, man!"

"2-nil to Annabeth." I said aloud. He eyed me with annoyance, and I relished my superiority.

...

Reyna led us through the front door of her house. It was quite nicely decorated, with mini gold statues of gods and goddess placed here and there. I spotted a girl about our age sitting on the sofa, reading. I assumed she was her sister, as they both looked similar.

"I didn't realise we were hosting a girl and a boy, but it doesn't matter. Annabeth, is it okay if you share my sister's room? Hylla and I can share. Then Percy can have the spare room."

"No problem."

"Sure," said Percy, "Unless Annie here would like to share a room with me."

I responded by smacking the back of his head, hard.

Reyna just raised an eyebrow and opened a door. "Percy, here you are. Your room."

He yawned. "I think I'm going to unpack. See ya, Wise Girl."

I rolled my eyes and he shut the door. "I bet he's just going to go to sleep."

Reyna tilted her head and grinned at me. "You sound like you know him pretty well."

I blushed. "Well, not really."

"Hmmm, I'm sure. Anyway, Annabeth how did you find my school?"

"It was great!"

"Glad you think so. You really impressed me on the vocab test. For someone who doesn't speak Italian well, you did brilliantly."

"Thank you, Reyna!"

She was silent for a while. "So, you don't like Percy at all?"

"Nope."

"Are you sure? I'm finding trouble believing that. Have you seen the way he looks at you when you're not looking?"

"In a perverted way, probably."

"You know, I don't think he's that much of a 'player', Annabeth. He cares about you a lot as well."

"Okay, why are we having this conversation?"

Reyna was silent. Then, she got up and went downstairs, gesturing for me to follow. "Hot chocolate?"

"Yes, please."

She poured me the drink, and went outside into the garden. It was bigger than my whole house, but I held my tongue and we started walking.

"So, what about you, Reyna? Anyone special?" I was just teasing her, but to my surprise she averted her eyes and looked fixedly at a bluebird.

"Not really."

"Well! Reyna! You should've told me! Does he go to your school? Point him out to me if we see him tomorrow."

"Okay, but don't fan girl please. I don't want to embarrass myself in front of him."

"I'm not fangirling, I'm just excited!"

"Shut up now." She smiled and we carried on walking.

I paused after a while? "So, what does he look like?" I couldn't help myself.

"I thought we finished with this conversation."

"This is a new one now."

She hesitated but smiled. "You ask too many questions, Annabeth. You'll find out tomorrow, but don't think you've dodged the topic of Percy."

Damn. "There's literally nothing to talk about."

"Okay, sure. You know, I'm not stupid but I'll let it go for now. But just think about it Annabeth."

With that, she strolled off, leaving me confused and irritated. I was about to follow her when I heard a dull thud. I looked above and saw Percy looking down from his window. He grinned sleepily and yawned, ruffling his hair. An overwhelming wave of fondness swept over me which I squashed back down quickly. I shook my head, and walked back inside, forgetting my anger at Reyna.

 **Thanks for reading! Review and tell me if you like it or dislike it! I get that some of the characters are OOC, but I will find a way to ease them into their true personalities later. Sorry if this isn't as long as you want it to be, but I don't want to drag it on for longer than necessary. Also, if you want, tell me what your favourite part of every chapter has been! That's all for now so ta-ta!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Btw guys, Reyna and Hylla live alone. In this fanfic, Hylla is old enough to look after Reyna as they don't have parents. Also, I apologise profusely for not updating in a while; I have had extreme writer's block. I did start writing another fic though, whilst I was not updating this one. You can check it out if you want, and tell me which one is better. Okay, I'll shut up now! Let the story recommence!**

Percy's POV:

 _I held out my fist and knocked on the door. The most beautiful girl I have ever seen stepped out, a gorgeous smile on the face. "Hello." She was wearing a floor-length gray dress and her blonde hair was in a bun. No makeup and her face was flawless. It felt so surreal, yet she was achingly familiar as she gracefully took my arm._

 _The scene changed and now the girl was leading me to a ballroom. She took my hands and we whirled across the dance floor, laughing and smiling and having an amazing time. I kept staring at her because she was so beautiful, and I just really wanted to kiss her._

 _The scene changed again and we were outside in a garden at night. The rain was pouring and the girl was still in her dress, soaked to the skin but refusing to look at me. "Percy, I don't like you. I never will. I don't trust you, you'll just leave me like you did to those other girls." She repeated these words over and over, each time driving a spear into my heart. And I still didn't know who she was. It was at the edge of my memory, but I didn't know anything about her, apart from that I loved her. I reached out and touched her shoulder, and she turned to face me. I was staring into stormy gray eyes that I had seen the whole night but never recognised. Annabeth._

I sat bolt upright in my bed and threw the covers off. "What. The. Hell just happened? What in the actual Hades did I just dream about?" I hissed to myself.

It was about 1 in the morning (Italian time so my sleep schedule was pretty bad) and I decided to go downstairs to get a glass of water, seeing as I was feeling sick from the emotional stress of that dream.

I tiptoed out of the room to the stairs. I was stealthily creeping across the landing like the ninja I am, when someone bumped into me and knocked me over. This was so unexpected that I let out a small manly scream, but silenced myself quickly for fear of waking Reyna. I looked at the person on top of me and saw a pair of cold, terrifyingly gray eyes glaring down at me.

Annabeth's POV:

 _I was so excited for some reason. I looked in the mirror and saw that I was wearing a floor length prom dress and had my hair in a bun. I was waiting by the door in anticipation. I heard a knock and opened it to find a handsome man in a tux standing there. "Hello." I said and took his arm. He was smiling at me lovingly, his soft hair messy and gorgeous sea-green eyes twinkling. At the time, I didn't register anything, it's like I was watching a movie and couldn't control anything._

 _The scene changed as I led the handsome man to a dance, where we laughed and smiled and dined. We talked about anything and everything, but I cannot remember what we actually discussed. All I remember is thinking about how amazing it would be to kiss him._

 _The scene changed to outside in a garden where it was raining heavily. I was soaked, but I felt warm because of the hot tears running down my face. I had turned away from the man, finally realising who he was. I was so confused as to why I was crying but all I remember saying was telling him that I don't like him. I could hear from the silence that Percy was hurt, but I couldn't deal with my emotions._

I woke up with tears in my eyes and a deep panging feeling. I didn't remember most of the events, I just remembered how much it hurt me for some reason. I shook these thoughts out of my head and went to go get some water. "Maybe the lump in my throat will go." I thought.

I crept across the landing so I wouldn't wake Reyna or Hylla. I was so preoccupied in my thoughts that I didn't notice the figure in front of me until too late. I walked straight into him and knocked him over, landing on top of him. My initial reaction was hostile, until I realised I was staring down at a pair of sea-green eyes.

"Percy." I said, getting over my initial shock. I hauled him to his feet. "Sorry." I was playing it cool, but my heart was hammering against my chest at a million beats per second and I was getting flushed. "I wasn't looking where I was going."

"Don't worry."

I looked at him suspiciously. No joke about me being on top of him?! I mean, I'm not complaining, but that didn't sound like Percy.

"Are you feeling okay?"

"Yeah, sure. Are you?"

"Hmm. I just had an...interesting dream."

Percy looked at me slightly oddly as we slowly made our way downstairs. "Me too."

I nodded my head. "Was yours sad?"

"Not the whole way through. Good at the start, but really sad at the end."

"Same here."

We dropped the topic, neither of us willing to talk about our dreams.

We went downstairs and I poured Percy some water.

"Thanks." He muttered, not reaching my eyes. He got up from the table with his water. "Night, Annabeth." And he went upstairs. His dream must have been really shocking, but whatever it was, I bet it wasn't as bad as mine.

...

"Annabeth?" I heard Reyna's voice from the other side of the door. "Wake up."

I sat up groggily and wiped the sleep from my eyes. "What?"

"Hey, we're going site-seeing today."

"What?"

"Me, you, Hylla and Percy."

I yelped at the thought of spending time with Percy. I yanked open the door, pulled Reyna inside and shut it.

"Reyna, I can't." I hissed.

"Can't what?" She said, shaking her arm out of my grip with a slight glare.

"Can't go out with Percy."

She looked at me confused for a minute, then her expression cleared. "So, you're finally realising your feelings. I'm very proud, but we're still going out. And dress nicely, it's quite warm outside." She left and I sank onto my bed dramatically. Ohh.

I heard Percy also groaning when Hylla woke him up, but seemed to oblige reluctantly.

I put on some denim shorts and a grey vest top. I wore a tartan shirt over it and left the buttons undone, and some white converse. I picked up my black shoulder bag, went to go check my appearance in the mirror and then almost screamed when I saw my face. My eyes were so puffy from my really bad sleep schedule, and my hair looked like a birds nest. I quickly attacked my curly hair with a brush and applied concealer. A touch of mascara and some lip balm later, and I was downstairs with everyone else.

Percy was wearing shorts as well with a tight blue t-shirt that showed his muscles. I blushed a tiny bit when he looked up and saw that I was staring, but to my utmost surprise, he just looked back down again at his phone.

"Okay Jackson, if that's the way you want to play it." I thought.

...

The whole day was awkward AF. I mean, we went to amazing places. We went to a really nice park, fed the ducks and talked to Reyna and Hylla. Percy and I did not exchange any words with each other, and when I tried to engage him in conversation, he would shut down.

When we went to go get gelato, again Percy didn't say anything to me. He would talk to Hylla and Reyna just fine, but didn't talk to me. I wondered what was up, but shook it out of my head. I wasn't going to let thoughts of Percy distract me from the beauty of Italy.

We carried our ice creams as we walked to the Spanish Steps. I was incredibly excited to see them, because I love architecture, and the photos look wonderful. **(AN: Please google a picture of the Spanish Steps if you don't know what they are. It's a very beautiful setting.)** Percy did look politely interested, but definitely seemed more excited by the fountain than the actual steps. It was quite busy as it was a warm day, and we had to stay close so we all wouldn't get separated. Soon, Hylla and Reyna met some friends from school, so Percy and I were left standing by the bottom of the steps awkwardly avoiding conversation. I couldn't stand it. It was actually driving me crazy, and giving me stress that I shouldn't have on holiday. "What is your deal?" I asked suddenly.

"What?"

"Why are you not talking to me and avoiding me?"

He sighed and looked down.

"Are you ignoring me again?"

"No. But I just needed time to think."

"About what?"

"About you."

This answer stopped me in my tracks and I stared at Percy's face. He had gone red and was looking decidedly uncomfortable, but he met my eyes for the first time that day. His deep eyes looked straight at me. "I just think that we should just be friends."

I sputtered. "What? I never said we should be more than friends!"

He sighed infuriatingly again. He turned to face me and opened his mouth to say something when an Italian woman stopped him. She said something in rapid Italian, but saw we didn't understand and spoke in English instead. "You want me to take picture of you and your boyfriend?"

I blushed. "Oh, no thanks, don't worry."

"It's no problem!" She beamed at us.

Percy awkwardly shuffled his feet and said: "Sure." I looked at him accusingly and he whispered: "the only way to get her to go."

The woman took Percy's phone and took a picture of both of us smiling at the fountain. She raised her eyebrows and I reluctantly put my arm over Percy. He stiffened but I smiled with a glare and he relaxed.

Once the woman left, I dropped my arm and turned to face Percy, but he was already looking back down at his phone. I was inwardly seething at him, but I stormed away, not trusting my tongue. I was so busy storming away, that I really wasn't looking where I was going. I ended up crashing into Reyna, who landed on top of an American boy, fuming. I hauled her up and apologised, but saw that she was going slightly pink and kept turning to the blonde boy. Confused, I turned to Hylla, who mouthed: "The one she likes."

Oooops. I pushed Reyna into the guy she likes. Ahaha. That's funny, and now I can find out who she likes.

"Very sorry about that. What's your name?"

He looked up and I saw that I was looking into a pair of electric blue eyes.

"Jason?"

"Oh hey, Annabeth."

Oh shit. Reyna likes Jason. Piper likes Jason. Bit of a theme going on, and I'm pretty sure one of them is going to get hurt. "Hi, Jason. Where's your exchange? And where's Thalia?"

"Frank? Oh he's around here somewhere. He saw his girlfriend and stopped to talk with her. Who knows where Thalia is?"

I laughed and carried on chatting with Jason. I could see Percy look up at me and Jason when he heard me laugh. "Hmm, interesting." I thought, and continued talking to Jason.

Soon, Percy came up to us.

"Hey, bro!" said Jason.

"Hey." he said, then turned to me. "Annabeth, Mr Brunner said we need to meet him at the museum by 5:00. We need to go now." And he grabbed by the arm and dragged me away from Jason angrily.

 **Don't forget to review and stay happy!**


	7. Chapter 7

**I do not own any of the PJO or HOO characters, they belong to dear old Uncle Rick.**

"Sei eccitato?" Reyna asked us excitedly. She was texting someone and drinking hot chocolate.

"English, Reyna!" called Percy and I simultaneously. We were on the sofa in the living room. Percy had somehow convinced Hylla to let him watch Finding Nemo, and I was just lounging around in my pyjama shorts. Percy and I were still pretty frosty towards each other, so over the past couple of days we had basically been avoiding serious conversation. It was incredibly awkward, but to be honest, I had nothing to be ashamed of. Hence why I was lying around in shorts next to him, purposefully trying to psych him out.

"Are you excited?" repeated Reyna, poking her head round to look at us. She raised an eyebrow at my attire, but then smirked. "For the party tonight."

Oh, the party. Some of the Italians there were having a party, but it wasn't a teacher thing. So that meant alcohol and almost-naked teenagers grinding on each other. At least, based on a typical American high schooler's idea of a party. We had been roped into going by Reyna, Hylla was staying home. Literally everyone that was on the exchange was going to the party.

I groaned. "Why?"

"Come on Annie!"

Percy smiled, his eyes not leaving the screen. "Come on Annie, you know you want to Annie..." he sang softly.

I ignored his musical interruption and turned back to Reyna. "Don't call me Annie. Do we have to?"

She narrowed her eyes. "Yes. We leave in about two hours. Plenty of time to get ready. Both of you." She added looking pointedly at Percy.

"I got it, be ready in two hours." he said, waving her off.

...

I was upstairs frantically trying to find some suitable clothes. As usual, I had left my appearance to the last minute, so I was tearing through my suitcase. There was a knock at the door. "Knock knock!" came a familiar sing-song voice. "Fairy godmother's here!"

"Piper?" I wrenched open the door. I was greeted by Piper in a turquoise dress with black leggings. She hadn't bothered with makeup but looked stunning as usual.

"You ready?" she asked.

"No. Help meeeeeee."

She rolled her eyes. "You know I'm helpless at this kind of thing. Get my sister to do it or something."

"Drew?"

"Okay, yeah, maybe not a great idea. She really hates you. And me too."

We laughed even though we shouldn't, but I let Piper into my room. "Jeez Annabeth, you were doing work? On vacation?" She was referencing all the paper and books strewn across my bed.

"I was a bit bored." I shrugged. I did have to keep on top of schoolwork somehow, even if it meant doing a little on holiday.

"This is why you definitely need to go to this party. You need a life. I brought some dresses!"

I spied something hideously pink in the pile and shook my head. Piper smiled sheepishly. "My mom brought these over last year for my birthday. Turned up at my dad's house and stayed for a full half an hour. New record." She muttered, slightly bitterly. She caught my expression and laughed. "It's okay though. At least she gave me stuff! So, I was thinking black would be good on you?" She held up a bunch of different dresses against me, until she stopped at one of the last ones. "Perfect! Put it on!"

I put on the dress, then realised it was pretty short. "Piper! I can't wear this!" It was a black wrap mini dress, which came down to about a halfway up my thigh.

"Why not? If it's your legs, they're lovely and tanned! Why not show them off?"

"Pipe-"

"Hey! You asked for my help, and now you have it! Be careful what you wish for, girlie. Now, to complete the look." She produced some black flats and a grey purse. "Put on that necklace your mom gave you."

I flinched but dug the necklace out from in my bag. It was nothing super special, just a normal silver chain necklace with an owl pendant on it. An owl was my mother's favourite animal, or so I was told.

My mom and Piper's mom were similar in different ways. I can't really speak too much for Piper's family, but I do know that Aphrodite up and left Piper and her dad without a goodbye. She left a note, saying how she will miss them but she's left to start a new life. She started a career as a model, then fashion designer. She launched her own makeup and beauty range and now everyone has heard of Aphrodite.

My mom left without any words or notes. She left when I was 7, and since then, she's only sent me this necklace in the post and that's it. And for some reason, I don't treasure this necklace. I wear it occasionally, but mostly it's a reminder of how mom doesn't care about me. She started a technology company, making advanced phones and tablets etc. The worst thing is that where she works is about twenty minutes from my house. So she could easily come and visit if she wanted.

Piper noticed my silence. "Annabeth! We've got a party to go to! Percy's friends are coming here to pick him up, Reyna's already left and Hazel's on her way here! So hurry up and get that outfit on!"

I sighed and pulled the shoes on as Piper attacked my hair. She pulled it up into a loose ponytail. "You don't want to look like you're trying too hard." she said with a grin. She put some nude lipstick on me and some mascara. "You look stunning! Percy won't be able to keep his eyes off you!" And with that, she ran out of the room, with me stumbling after her screaming.

...

We walked into the party, with me trying to look confident. It was about nine, and people were already tipsy. Jason immediately greeted us (Piper) and introduced us to his friends.

"Hi." said a girl with curly golden hair and almond eyes. "I'm Hazel. This is Frank." she said, gesturing to a beefy Asian kid with a cute face.

"Hi." he said in a deep voice.

Reyna came over and put her hand on Jason's shoulder. He smiled, almost embarrassedly as Piper walked to the kitchen, grumbling. "I need a drink." I followed her and she was about to put a margarita glass to her lips when I stopped her.

"I don't want my best friend drunk off her ass this early. Just wait a bit."

She ignored me and downed the glass. "Much better. Let's dance!"

She led me to the dance floor and immediately started dancing. She was swinging her hips and shaking her hair, and I could see the stares of all the boys in the vicinity. They came a little closer, but I stood protectively next to Piper. Hazel, Jason, Thalia and Frank came over to join us.

A couple of pina coladas later, and everyone was letting loose. Now kids, I am not irresponsible. I'm not the type to get drunk enough to not be able to look after myself. However, I had drank enough to feel myself relax and give in to the music. But shit got real when the host of the party (Dakota, his name was) dragged a DVD player with a bunch of wires on a tray. "Listen up!" We all eventually fell quiet, apart from the occasional loud hollers from the really drunk teens. "Yo, it's karaoke time!" There were wild cheers and chest bumps at this, and soon everything had descended into chaos. So many people were fighting for the mike, including Piper (who had forgotten in her drunken state that she has major stage fright).

Once Piper had fought off a bunch of girls to get the mike, she got up on the mini stage and began her rendition of 'Summertime'. It was almost spellbinding, everyone in the room was swaying along. I can't even remember it ending.

The next thing I remember is being pushed on the stage by a bunch of people. Music began to play, and before I knew it, I was singing both parts to a duet. A High School Musical duet. And I knew all of the words.

" _Mmm, mmm, yeah_

 _I got a lot of things I have to do,_

 _All these distractions, our future's coming soon._

 _We're being pulled in a hundred different directions._

 _But whatever happens I know I've got you"_

I took the mike off of the stand and began to have fun with it. I was slightly drunk, bear in mind.

 _"You're on my mind,_

 _you're in my heart_

 _It doesn't matter where we are_

 _We'll be alright, even if we're miles apart_

 _All I wanna do is be with you, be with you_

 _There's nothing we can do I just wanna be with you, only you_

 _No matter where life takes us_

 _Nothing can break us apart_

 _I just wanna be with you_

 _Yeah yeah_

 _Just be with you_

 _You know how life can be,_ _it changes over night_

 _It's sunny then raining, but it's alright_

 _A friend like you_

 _always makes it easy_

 _I know that you get me every time_

 _Through every up, through every down_

 _You know I'll always be around_

 _Through anything, you can count on me!_

 _All I wanna do is be with you, be with you"_

By this point, everyone in the room was chanting along.

 _There's nothing we can do I just wanna be with you, only you"_

I remember scanning the audience whilst I sang, focusing on Percy. He stood there, grinning goofily and clapping. He seemed to have regained his 'playful' demeanour - an obvious effect of alcohol.

 _No matter where life takes us_

 _Nothing can break us apart_

 _I just wanna be with you_

 _I just wanna be with you"_

I grinned, dropped the mike and sauntered off stage. I heard a massive whistle from Percy, so I rolled my eyes and blew him a kiss.

...

I was comforting a random crying girl for a while after the karaoke. I had my eye on Piper, who was dancing with Jason. I was emptying the girl's tequila glass when she wasn't looking, and trying to stop myself from swaying.

I remember losing my sense of gravity and expecting to hit the floor, but instead looking directly into someone's eyes as they clasped my shoulders. Luke.

I immediately attempted to straighten up and pushed his hands off me. "Thanks Luke." I said almost coldly and averted my eyes back to the girl.

"Annabeth." he said and sat down on the barstool on the other side of me.

"Yes?" I said, not looking at him.

"Are you enjoying the party?" I didn't reply, so he pulled my face gently in his direction. "You could try looking at me, you know."

Immediately, I slapped his hand away. "Try that again and I'll break your hand."

He put his hands up in defence. "Sorry." He didn't appear to be drunk, but maybe the alcohol just hadn't taken effect. I wasn't really sure, everything was pretty much blurred. "Annabeth?"

I tried to focus on him. I suddenly realised that he looked good - handsome and presentable. I had to remind myself that he was a cheating asshole. Even when I'm intoxicated, I'm not that stupid.

"It's okay, Luke." I carried on patting the girl on the back. "Are you enjoying the party?"

"It's nice." I could feel him studying me, and I tried to not feel uncomfortable. "My friends are all off with their girlfriends."

I snorted, unable to stop myself. "I guess you guys don't have that in common then."

He stared at me again, the meaning not lost on him. "Annabeth, I said I was sorry. What more do you want me to do?"

I turned to him, exasperated. "You can't do anything else, Luke. What's done is done." I noticed his silence as he stared down at his hands for a bit. This Luke was unlike the Luke that had been trying to get me to go out with him again for the past few weeks. I sighed. "I suppose, if you really do want to change, focus on being a better person. Unless you just want to get in my pants."

He smiled wryly. "No. I promise, I'm not a bad person."

I bit my lip. At least he wasn't blaming it on his testosterone again. "Well, I guess you better go make sure your friends are safe. Considering they're probably all drunk of their asses."

He let out a hollow laugh and shook my hand. "See you around."

"Bye." After Luke left, I turned back to the girl, but she was gone. I was worried, until I saw her standing with her friend who was very sober. I smiled and waved to her, then turned back round to face the barman.

"Anything I can get you, senorita?" said a really familiar voice. I studied the barman's face, and then it hit me.

"Hey! Leo, right?"

The guy smiled. He was short and scrawny, with an impish sort of smile. I think he was Hispanic, or that might have been an extra detail I added in. "That's me. You're Annabeth, correct?" He rolled his tongue on the 'rr'.

"Correct." I said, mimicking.

He grinned. "So, what can I get you?" I wondered later why he was tending the bar, but not at that moment.

"Um, can I trust you to just get me water? And not spike it."

"Of course you can! My full name is Leo the ever so trustworthy Valdez, so one water coming up!" He produced a glass and filled it from a tap. He handed it to me and placed his elbows on the bar. "So, who was that guy who came up to you earlier?"

I laughed hollowly. "Are we just going to have a gossip?"

Leo shrugged. "I've nothing better to do, and you're the only one willing to talk to me, so fire away."

"His name is Luke. My ex."

"Ooh, this is going to turn into a telenovela! Go on, what did he want?"

"You know, I have no fucking clue." I rarely swore, but in my defence I was slightly drunk. "He's been wanting me back for the last month, and now he suddenly comes up to me all friendly-like."

Leo nodded. "Why did you guys split?"

"He cheated."

"Oh. What a dickhead."

"I know!" I stared down at the gems on my purse. "But what about you?"

He grinned. "Not much to tell. I'm a no-go in the relationship department."

"Aww, Leo." I asked him about anyone he was interested in, but it was clear that he wasn't listening. I followed his gaze to where Hazel was standing, laughing at something Frank said. "Leo!" I said again.

His head snapped back to look at me. I sighed. "I think that one's a no-go unfortunately. I'm pretty sure her and Frank have got the hots for each other."

He snorted. "Yeah, I know. Doesn't hurt to try though, right?"

"Leo," I warned, "don't be a home wrecker."

"I know, I know, I was kidding senorita." His eyes focused on something behind me. "Hey, there's an interested guy looking at you. I think his name's Peter? Oh, Percy."

I groaned and put my head in my hands. I didn't want to deal with this now.

"You want me to get rid of him?"

"Nah, it's okay."

"Okay, holler if you need me." He disappeared to serve someone else and I kept my position, waiting for Percy.

I felt a hand on my shoulder, and I quickly grabbed it and twisted it. It was an accident, I have pretty good reflexes.

"Ow!" I heard a familiar yelp and immediately let go of it.

"Sorry." I said, turning my head to look into those bright sea-green orbs.

 **Whoops, I wrote too much. I left it there because I didn't want this to continue forever, and I didn't want to bore you guys. Don't forget to review and tell me what I'm doing wrong or right. Byeeee!**


	8. YOU'RE NOT GOING TO LIKE THIS

GUYS I'M SO SORRY BUT I'M ABOUT TO BE REALLY ANNOYING.

So, it has been a while since I updated this story. To be honest, I don't really have a valid excuse, as part from exams and family stuff.

That being said, I am going to re-edit this story. Looking back on it is making me cringe, so I'm going to change it. So it may take a while, but I WILL continue. Sorry again and bye!


	9. ATTENTION - ADOPTION DETAILS

ATTENTION!

If you wish to adopt this story, you may pm me. First person to pm me gets it. The same is also happening with me other stories. Whoever adopts it can rewrite it, edit it and do what they want with the storyline.

I'm really sorry guys but I'm just not feeling this anymore. I've been on hiatus for so long now, and when I finally came back, I tried to write but I couldn't.


End file.
